Wednesday, November 5, 2014
“War is God’s way of teaching Americans geography.” - Rolf Potts“If in doubt, just walk until your day becomes interesting.” - Rolf PottsRolf Potts is the author of
Vagabonding (
hear the audio book sample here), one of my favorite books of all-time. It was one of just two books (the other was
Walden) that I carried with me around the world from 2004-2005. Those adventures led directly to
The 4-Hour Workweek.
World travel doesn’t have to be a wealthy person’s sport. In this often hilarious conversation, Rolf and I dig deep into travel tactics, creating time wealth, “managing success,” and much more. It’s a fun romp through every imaginable topic, from business to poetry, and from Wall Street to psychedelics.
Enjoy!
This podcast is brought to you by
99Designs, the world’s largest marketplace of graphic designers. Did you know I used 99Designs to
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The 4-Hour Body?
Here are some of the impressive results.
This episode is also brought to you by
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QUESTION(S) OF THE DAY: What are the most valuable lessons (or tricks) you’ve learned through travel? Please share your story
in the comments.
Scroll below for links and show notes.
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Non-iTunes RSS feedSelected Links from the Episode
Part IPart IIConnect with Rolf Potts:
Show Notes
Part I- Converting travel fantasies into realities and the time-wealth principle [2:30]
- Deconstructing and defining success, money, and freedom [12:00]
- The time-strapped billionaire paradox [14:10]
- Resources to fight the fears associated with world travel [25:09]
- How new collaborative consumption technologies affect the long-term travel experience [29:00]
- JP Morgan’s trip to Egypt, and what we can learn about business on the road [40:56]
- Vacations and their effect on creative output [42:55]
- When to leave the optimize-for-efficiency mindset behind [44:32]
- Can you replicate travel benefits with a “staycation”? [51:37]
- Exploring appreciation vs. achievement [54:08]
- Rolf Potts’ writing process + “Swoopers” and “Bashers” [59:54]
Part II- The breakthrough for Potts in his writing: structure learned from screenwriting tomes [1:00]
- Vagabonding and the therapeutic use of psychedelics [7:00]
- The art of getting lost, and the benefits of getting lost [8:05]
- What it’s like to teach writing in Paris, and who is a good fit for the class [16:15]
- Thoughts on a mid-career Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) [22:13]
- “Success management” and her champions: Dave Chapelle and John Hughes? [35:26]
- Rapid-fire questions: Grizzly Man, Con Air, the love of poetry, and more [41:45]
People Mentioned
Part IPart II